THE DRILL SERGEANT: Talisman Mining (ASX: TLM) has provided an update to recent activities carried out at the company’s Sinclair nickel project in Western Australia.

The company has completed a series of detailed near-mine and regional exploration reviews, which it said has provided some encouraging results.

Last year Talisman struck an agreement with major player Glencore to acquire the Sinclair nickel project, since when it has commenced detailed assessment of the Stirling and Skye prospects with the aim of defining potential drill targets.

So far the company has had a review of high-priority historical geophysical data carried out, as well as completing 3-dimensional geological modelling of the Stirling and Skye prospects.

“3D geological modelling indicates that massive-to-heavily-disseminated nickel sulphide mineralisation at Skye and Stirling is clearly developed along at least two well-constrained basal ultramafic positions beneath, and immediately to the south of, the Sinclair mine infrastructure,” Talisman Mining said in its ASX announcement.

The company claims to have also identified a number of strong late-time down-hole EM conductors along the down-plunge basal extensions of the prospective Skye and Stirling mineralised ultramafic units, which it considers to present as potential future drill targets.

Talisman is now planning to determine the best positions to undertake potential drill testing and further down-hole electromagnetics.

Other work has identified massive nickel sulphides from limited historical drilling carried out at the Delphi prospect, which is located four kilometres along strike to the south of the Sinclair nickel mine.

The company’s geophysical consultant, Newexco is completing a review of the historical ground and down-hole electromagnetic data along the Delphi trend.

“Two target areas have been identified by this work,” Talisman said.

“Supported by down-hole and surface electromagnetic conductors, plus evidence of nickel sulphide mineralisation in prospective ultramafic rocks.”

Email: info@talismanmining.com.au

Website: www.talismanmining.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: St George Mining (ASX: SGQ) has received assay
results for Phase 2 of a 2014 drilling campaign at the Company’s 100 per
cent-owned East Laverton property in Western Australia.

St George said the results have confirmed numerous intersections of nickel sulphide and base metal mineralisation.

At the Windsor nickel sulphide prospect, four of the six drill holes completed intersected nickel sulphides while all six holes intersected a thick, highly prospective komatiite channel, which the company explained hosts this mineralisation.

According to St George these results illustrate the thick ultramafic sequences encountered by drilling, and the higher grade nickel sulphide intervals within those units.

These include:

WINRC004
89 metres at 0.2 per cent nickel from 57 metres, including 2m at 0.4 per cent nickel from 122m;

WINRC005
147m at 0.25 per cent nickel from 124m, including 7m at 0.34 per cent nickel from 161m and 1m at 0.4 per cent nickel from 292m; and

WINRC007
90m at 0.2 per cent nickel from 227m, including 1m at 0.75 per cent nickel from 286m.

“The drilling at Windsor has identified widespread disseminated nickel sulphides within a broad channel,” St George Mining executive chairman John Prineas said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“This large, fertile channel is now an even more compelling target for massive nickel sulphide mineralisation at the basal contact or on the flanks of the channel.”

The discovery hole at Windsor was drilled by BHP Billiton Nickel West in 2012, intersecting 30m at 0.31 per cent nickel, including 6m at 0.48 per cent nickel and 2m at 0.62 per cent nickel.

St George indicated its recent drilling has continued to encounter further nickel sulphide mineralisation as drilling extends the nickel sulphide zone from this initial intersection.

The drilling results at Windsor define a large komatiite channel flow with an unconstrained zone of nickel sulphides that are open laterally and at depth.

The company considers tis to be an optimal search area for massive nickel sulphide mineralisation, and only a very small portion of the prospective ultramafic has been tested by drilling so far.

Website: www.stgm.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: IMX Resources (ASX: IXR) has received final assay results from diamond drilling completed last year at the company’s Chilalo graphite project in south-east Tanzania.

The company claims the results reinforce the potential for a sizeable graphite resource at Chilalo as the diamond drilling results correlate with those from a twinned Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling program.

IMX said these results could lead to a maiden JORC 2012 Mineral Resource estimate for the project.
 
The final assay results from the 2014 diamond drill program included:

Hole DD067
24 metres at 12.29 per cent total graphitic carbon (TGC) (twinned from Hole RC140 which returned 24m at 11.7 per cent TGC);

Hole DD068
24m at 12.5 per cent TGC (twinned from Hole RC157 which returned 24m at 13.1 per cent TGC);

Hole DD069
12m at 10.2 per cent TGC and 10m at 9.64 per cent TGC (twinned from Hole RC151 which returned 20m at 7.2 per cent TGC); and

Hole DD070

16m at 10.3 per cent TGC and 16m at 7.4 per cent TGC (twinned from Hole RC154 which returned 16m at 11.7 per cent TGC and 16m at 5.9 per cent).

Location of RC and diamond drilling with notable intersections. Source: Company announcement

IMX indicated the diamond drilling core samples will undergo metallurgical testwork in order to glean information regarding the flake size distribution of the deposit, flotation recoveries and concentrate grades as well as providing enough core for marketing samples to be prepared.

The company explained its metallurgical testwork program and resource calculation are progressing, with both expected to be completed in March 2015.

“The Chilalo project is emerging as an exciting opportunity for IMX,” IMX Resources acting CEO Phil Hoskins said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“We have made outstanding progress in the six months since completing a desktop review of the graphite potential at Nachingwea.

“We are looking forward to receiving the results of both the metallurgical testwork and the resource estimation.

“Our initial objective was to rapidly assess Chilalo’s potential against competing graphite projects internationally.

“With this work almost complete, we look forward to putting Chilalo on the map as one of the highest quality, undeveloped graphite deposits in the world.

“We expect to receive initial results from the recently commenced high-level development study on Chilalo next month, and this, together with the maiden resource and metallurgical testwork, should pave the way for us to progress to the next stage.”

Email: info@imxres.com.au

Website: www.imxresources.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Musgrave Minerals (ASX: MGV) has been granted the Exploration Licence (E28/2405) within the company’s wholly-owned Mamba project in the Fraser Range.

The Mamba nickel-copper project is located in the same belt as the Nova-Bollinger nickel-copper sulphide discoveries of Sirius Resources (ASX: SIR) in south-eastern Western Australia.

Mamba project location. Source: Company announcement

Musgrave has identified 12 priority nickel-copper targets at the Mamba project from a detailed aeromagnetic survey the company carried out over the entire tenement in September 2014.

According to Musgrave the targets show magnetic characteristics, which it has interpreted to be consistent with mafic-ultramafic intrusive bodies, the prospective host for nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation in the district.

“We are excited to have this new tenement granted and look forward to some exciting exploration results as we progress,” Musgrave Minerals managing director Rob Waugh said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“There has been very little previous exploration conducted here in what appears to be a very prospective part of the belt.”

Musgrave explained the targets comprise of two broad target styles it has interpreted from the aeromagnetic data.

The first style includes discrete magnetic highs interpreted to be mafic/ultramafic intrusive bodies prospective for magmatic nickel-copper deposits.

The second style includes de-magnetised zones associated with major structural intersections or fold closures, which the company consider could represent increased areas of fluid flow and potential mineralisation.

Musgrave indicated its follow-up exploration on the 12 priority targets will involve a combination of ground electromagnetic (EM) surveys to define specific bedrock conductors and air core drilling to identify the potential footprint of nickel-copper mineralisation.

The ground EM survey is anticipated to commence, as a priority, in March with drilling to follow.

Email: info@musgraveminerals.com.au

Website: www.musgraveminerals.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Each week any number of junior exploration plays set out to drill their ground. Here’s a small selection of what’s been happening this week.

Decline development and refurbishment at Gorno zinc project

Energia Minerals (ASX: EMX) has commenced rehabilitation work to access the previously unmined Colonna Zorzone deposit at the company’s 100 per cent-owned high-grade Gorno zinc project in the Lombardia Province of northern Italy.

The refurbished Forcella adit will provide access to the upper levels of the Colonna Zorzone deposit where the company plans to carry out a detailed survey of the pre-existing development within the Colonna Zorzone and to complete a 480 metre underground diamond drilling program to validate historical drilling results.

“This marks the beginning of the next chapter in our strategy to outline a significant high-grade zinc resource at Gorno to take advantage of what is widely forecast to be a very strong zinc market this year during a period of falling global production,” Energia Managing Director Kim Robinson said.

“We are making rapid progress, thanks in part to the strong support of local authorities, and we are well on track to start confirmatory diamond drilling within the upper levels of the Colonna Zorzone in April of this year.”

Drilling to recommence at Stark discovery

Mithril Resources (ASX: MTH) is set to commence a diamond drilling program at the Stark copper–nickel–PGE discovery, located near Meekatharra in Western Australia.

A 300 metre diamond hole will be drilled approximately 40m down-dip of two drill intercepts the company recently obtained from its first ever drill test of Stark of:

The aim of the drilling is to confirm the prospect’s grade potential and continuity of mineralisation.
16 metres at 0.81 per cent copper, 0.09 per cent nickel, and 0.39g/t PGE’s from 183m in NRC14008, including 4m at 1.91 per cent copper, 0.18 per cent nickel, and 0.96g/t PGE’s from 194m; and

13m at 0.44 per cent copper, 0.08 per cent nickel, and 0.24g/t PGE’s from 144m in NRC14003, including 2m at 1.04 per cent copper, 0.18 per cent nickel, and 0.49g/t PGE’s from 152m.

The drilling will also test a modelled ground EM conductor, the bulk of which is interpreted to lie beneath the two intercepts.

Drilling commenced at Canindé graphite project

Paradigm Metals (ASX: PDM) has commenced a NQ diamond drilling program it’s the company’s 80 per cent-owned Canindé graphite project, located in Ceará State, Brazil.

The diamond drilling program is being carried out on the Pedra Preta target and will comprise five drill holes for a minimum of 420 metres distributed on three separate drill sections along 400m strike and open from both sides.

The company anticipates the drilling should be concluded within a three week period and assays received progressively during the March Quarter.